Related Pages

Political Engagement

APPG on RE

An All Party Parliamentary Group is a group which exists to support a particular cause and has membership from across the political spectrum.

The RE Council provided the secretariat for the All Party Parliamentary Group on Religious Education between June 2012 and January 2016. This section is about its work during this period, including its aims, membership and activities.

Meetings of the APPG on RE

The minutes from the meetings of the APPG while the REC provided the Secretariat for the group can be downloaded here:

Meeting of 28 November 2012 - transcript for the first oral evidence session

Meeting of 16 January 2013 - the APPG inquiry into the supply of and support for teachers of RE held its second Oral Evidence Session. The full transcript of the session can be downloaded here.

Launch of the APPG report 25 March 2013 - Download a one page summary document of the report's main findings and recommendations, or dowload the full report. Click here to read the minutes of this meeting.

Meeting of 8 July 2013 (AGM) - Click here to read the minutes of this meeting.

Meeting of 10 December 2013 - Inquiry into the contribution of religious education to good community relations - Oral Evidence Session 1. Click here to download the minutes of this meeting.

Meeting of 27th January 2014 - Inquiry into the contribution of religious education to good community relations - Oral Evidence Session 2. Click here to read the transcript.

Meeting of 24th February 2014 - Inquiry into the contribution of religious education to good community relations - Oral Evidence Session (3). Click here to read the transcript.

APPG Reports

RE: the Truth Unmasked, published in March 2013, was the APPG's first report. It examined evidence about the supply of and support for teachers of RE, finding a worrying and deteriorating decline in both. It drew on evidence from schools, other bodies and individuals concerned with RE and from two substantial oral evidence sessions at APPG meetings. The full report can be downloaded here and a one page summary document here.

The contribution of RE to good community relations was published in March 2014. It drew on evidence from students, teachers, local authorities and organisations working on this issue at local, national and international levels. The summary report can be downloaded here. The evidence submitted during the three oral evidence sessions at APPG meetings can be seen in the Meetings section above.

A longer, more reflective report on the evidence submitted was written by Dr Joyce Miller, who coordinated the inquiry, and is available to download here.

What do people say about RE?

Without RE, far too many negative stereotypes and unthinking prejudices would exist as a result of ignorance. RE enables children to understand why communities and individuals may dress, practise and believe differently to themselves.

Disclaimer
The Religious Education Council is an umbrella organisation. As such its members represent a wide range of viewpoints. The REC website contains links to the websites of its member organisations, as well as to other useful RE-related sites.

The RE Council is not responsible for the content of external websites. The inclusion of a link to an external website from religiouseducationcouncil.org.uk should not be understood to be an endorsement of that website or of the site’s owners or their products or services.